Failed love costs professor Rs 22 lakh after 16 years

INDORE: This professor started a love affair with his student, had a physical relationship with her and promised to marry her. And when it came to marrying her, he ran away saying that his family members were not ready. But 16 years after the love affair ended, law has finally caught up with the medico of a premier dental college in Indore.

Banglore high court directed him this week to shell out Rs 22 lakh to the woman as compensation. Dr K V Nanjunda Swamy had an affair with a student he met in a dental college in Sullia (Karnataka) in 1998. The relationship between the professor, who was a lecturer then, and the first year student, went on for five years. However, when they were ready to marry each other in 2002, his family did not agree as they belonged to different castes.

The girl had then filed cases against him for cheating, rape, and caste atrocities. As the case continued, the two married different persons and went their own ways. At present, the girl is a lecturer in a dental college in Bangalore while the Dr Swamy is posted with paediatric and preventive dentistry department of Sri Aurobindo Institute of Dental Sciences since July 2011.

Sixteen years after their affair ended, the two have buried their differences on the suggestion of Bangalore high court, and Swamy has agreed to pay the compensation to her.

Earlier, a lower court had acquitted Swamy of charges of rape, terming it a consensual act between two adults. But it found him guilty of breach of promise to marry and sentenced him to one year imprisonment. After this, he approached the HC which stayed the sentence till the case was disposed of. Swamy and the girl had agreed they had an affair, but it was the breach of promise that was the bone of contention. Swamy's advocate produced various letters written by the girl to claim that she had asked him to marry someone else. But in some of the letters, the girl had stated that she wanted to marry him. It was revealed during arguments that the girl's family almost forced him to marry her at a subregistrar's office in Mysore as his family opposed the marriage. But Swamy had managed to run away.

Swamy's advocate argued that since both had married other people, there was no breach of promise. While conceding that their relationship was consensual, the court wanted to ascertain whether Swamy had the intention of ultimately cheating her.